


olympians (don't say they're in love)

by sadie18



Series: celestials love (but won't say it out loud) [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Alternate Universe - Greek Mythology, F/F, Gods, Greek Mythology - Freeform, Greek and Roman Mythology - Freeform, M/M, Matchmaking, Minor Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald, Minor Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Minor Hermione Granger/Pansy Parkinson, Minor Seamus Finnigan/Dean Thomas, Multi, Mutual Pining, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-02
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-07-05 20:28:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15871167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadie18/pseuds/sadie18
Summary: even after centuries, they look seventeen and act seventeenit's been 2,473 years, and marcus STILL won't grow the balls to admit he's in love with oliver wood-(or a fic loosely based off "i won't say (i'm in love) from hercules)





	olympians (don't say they're in love)

**Author's Note:**

> everyone is gay unless deemed otherwise

It was when he saw how sickeningly in love Luna Lovegood and Ginny Weasley were when he felt it. 

It had been dinner on Olympus, always a boisterously loud affair, and Marcus was scowling at the two lovers across the table from him.

"What's with it, Flint?" Draco Malfoy, the blonde shit, nudged his elbow into Marcus' ribs. "You look like someone pissed in your nectar."

"Bugger off, Malfoy."

To mortals, the dinner would've just looked like a rather (very) large group of teenagers, with a couple of young adults and even fewer elders. Depended when they had ascended immortality. But they were in Olympus, and there were no mortals in Olympus, just gods and goddesses and celestial beings beyond mundane comprehension. 

The group was so large, that Marcus almost couldn't name them all, but he had centuries. Millenia. Aeons to learn them all. 

Malfoy, for example, just like the most of them, didn't look a day over seventeen. He'd sacrificed his life to save his family in his time as a mortal. Eventually, his mother followed. His father, on the other hand, rotted in the Underworld with the other sinners. Malfoy sometimes visited to mock him, and maybe stay at Blaise's for tea. Blaise manned the Underworld, after all. 

On Olympus, there was no true leader. It was thrown around every thousand years. It had been Dumbledore's power, last year, but he retired to be there for his lover, Grindelwald. Marcus didn't really know the details, but he knew that Minerva McGonagall had it now. She was strong, deserving indeed, named after one of the original Olympians.

"Alright, Marky, needn't get so fussy." Daphne Greengrass snipped from his other side. "You just look like Granger when she's seen someone bend a page of one of her millions of books."

Marcus frowned. He's need to have been really bugged if he'd looked like  _that._

"It's nothing." He muttered, but groaned when he saw Ginny press a kiss to Luna's head. "Do they have to do that here? We're at the table."

"What, Weasley and Lovegood? I think it's rather romantic. They've been together, for what, 3,000 years? Going strong." Daphne commented. "Don't look so miffed, I'd think you were jealous, if I didn't know any better."

Marcus snorted at that, but let his eyes wander to across the table, meters and meters away. Sat there was a boy Marcus  _despised._

Oliver Wood had been a soldier in his lifetime, forced into the army to take care of his family. Had a spear shoved into his stomach meant for his sergeant, and then the entire army would've gone to shit. Undeniably brave, a perfect story to go with his perfect face and perfect smile and charming personality. He was an Olympian favourite. 

It was sickening, how perfect he was. 

Marcus tried to pretend he hadn't been in love with Oliver Wood for about 2,473 years. 

The boy in question was sitting next to Harry Potter (who assassinated an evil, fascist dictator but was stabbed right after) and one of the Weasley twins. The entire Weasley family had ascended, and Marcus was unsure what they'd done. He only knew that Ginny Weasley had been a female warrior queen in her lifetime. The rest of them were probably soldiers as well. 

"Hello? Earth to Marcus?"

His thoughts were interrupted by Daphne again. 

"Don't you have a particular Justin Finch-Fletchley to moon over?" He responded rudely. She blushed red and mirrored his scowl. 

He looked over to Luna and Ginny. They were snogging now.

Marcus's heart clenched as he left the table abruptly.

He missed the look Oliver stole as he walked away.

* * *

 Marcus saw Oliver again two days later.

In between the incident at dinner and when he saw him again, Marcus saw two more incidents of disgusting displays of romance. 

Pretty boy Cedric Diggory had surprised his  _two_ lovers, Cho Chang and Roger Davies with rare flowers that grew in  _China_. Cho had squealed in delight and Roger had flushed like a teenager. Which they were. But like, way different. They'd only been dating for 300 years, mortals below!

And then Marcus had the  _sheer luck_ of seeing Seamus Finnegan and Dean Thomas giggling like schoolgirls, pulling each other by the hand into an abandoned temple to a god long rotted away. It was sad, when a god rotted away. It happened when nobody loved, cherished, or respected them anymore.

Which Marcus was  _entirely afraid of._

And was reminded of this when he saw Oliver training on the Olympian grounds, looking  _unfairly_ attractive. Even for a god. He'd just been throwing a discus around with Angelina Johnson (who was a very scary lady) but he was  _shirtless_ and  _tan_ and it just wasn't fair.

Marcus could remember the moment he'd fallen for that moron.

Colin Creevey had just ascended into celestial life, and he'd been terrified out of his mind, freaking out in a way only mortals would've. He was aware he was dead, but thought Olympus was a dream, a way to lull him into a false sense of security before being yanked cruelly into the Underworld. Blaise had been quite offended.

Oliver had reached to Colin and had put a hand on his shoulder. He had whispered something softly into the boy's ear, and nobody knew what it was, but the boy had instantly relaxed, still snuffling and tearing, but his shoulders lowered and he smiled weakly. Oliver had then guided him away from everyone else, chatting amicably along the way. And  _that's_ when Marcus had been shoved rather brutally in love, and had been bitter ever since, avoiding him when he could, taunting him when he couldn't. 

Marcus had just wanted to go for a run, but opted for snarling to himself and walking as far away from them as he could and then snarled even more when he found himself traipsing along Lover's Lane. Lovegood was one of the many goddesses and gods of love present on Olympus, so he wasn't surprised to see her skipping alongside him.

"Hello, Marcus." She said absently, tugging at one of her blonde curls. 

"Hi Lovegood." He grouched, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

She looked him over, eyes narrowing at his slouched shoulders and red face and scowl. He felt a rather bottomless feeling of dread when her eyes lit up. 

"You  _still_ haven't told Oliver you're in love with him?"

He spluttered rather unattractively at that, his face going a charming shade of maroon. 

"Am  _not!"_ He choked out, images of a shirtless Oliver, a tender Oliver, a laughing Oliver flashing through his mind. "What _bollocks_ , Lovegood. You're loony for real."

"Marcus, please." She smiled ditzily, though she might have been one of the most clever goddesses he knew. "I'm a goddess of  _emotions_. I can  _see_ those things. Just like how Parkinson, for being a goddess of sex isn't doing very well seducing Hermione, and Harry and Draco are absolutely  _useless_ around each other."

Marcus grunted. He refused to acknowledge the fact that she was right and even Flitwick, who was blind in one eye could see those two pairs.

"You've gone barmy, sorry to break it to you." He muttered.

"Oh, who do you think you're kidding?" She responded dreamily. "He's the earth and heavens to you."

He shook his head vigorously at that. What a  _romantic_ notion. Marcus hated that.

"No chance." He said. He had aimed for his tone to be amicable, but ended more miserable.

"I've seen the way you've looked at him for centuries." Luna continued. "I see why. He's got a beautiful smile. His laugh sounds like music. Very fit. Kind, oh how could I forget! It was since Colin Creevey!"

He pinched his nose. He felt a migraine coming on. "You're way off base."

"He's charming, really. I understand. I'm hopelessly in love with Ginny though."

"Get off my case, Loony."

Why was Lover's Lane so long? Marcus desperately wanted this long walk to end. Preferably off a cliff into the pits of the underworld. Blaise would take care of him. 

"Not till you admit it!" Luna said, conspiracy hiding under her serene smile. 

"I'm. Not. In. Love. With. Oliver. Fucking. Wood." He snarled. She wasn't fazed. 

Lover's Lane was a long, pale pink path, The cherry blossoms and rose bushes that lined the road were in full bloom. The sky was blue and the sun was shining. Luna waved her hand and then suddenly; a glimmering image of Marcus running on the sports path was shown. It was a memory from many years ago. 

_In the stands, there sat Oliver Wood, pretending he wasn't watching Marcus's body move, holding an open book but not understanding a word._

"He loves you too."

The image fell away and Luna tugged at her curls in satisfaction when she saw Marcus redden. 

He was embarrassed to say that his heart hammered in chest when he saw that image. 

"It's too cliche." He snarked under his breath. He wouldn't give in. 

"You two are both gods of war. Flint and Wood make for a destructively passionate fire. Love and war always went so well together." She murmured back. 

"I'm not in love with him."

"Do I need to show you another image?" She sighed. Another flick of her wrist.

This time, Marcus saw a temple of war, on Earth. This memory was old. Over 2,000 years ago, maybe.

_He, Oliver, Ginny, Angelina were holding court. Soldiers were praying before them._

_Marcus was lounging lazily on the throne, sat before the mortals praying for a won battle._

_"To our lords of battalion, accept our offering as a a sign of respect, and we hope to be met with good luck on the war grounds." An army general finished his prayer. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."_

_The general dismissed the rest of the army from the temple. As they filed out, he turned to Marcus, desperation in his eyes._

_"I beg of you, Lords and Ladies, to not see me disrespectful. I would just like to pray once more, for my daughter and wife. I beg, I pray, I hope, that you can protect them through the impending invasions and battles. I will sacrifice anything, anything for their safety." He pleaded, voice cracking. "I beg of you not to see me as disrespectful. I ask with the utmost devotion._

_Marcus looked upon this tiny, begging mortal. It_ was  _disrespectful to pray of too much at a temple, especially at one as destructive as a temple of war. But deep in the back of his mind and the bottom of his heart, Marcus saw himself, many a year ago, begging to the gods for the same things. Mortals always desired, and Marcus knew the feeling all too well._

_He saw in the corner of his eye. Ginny was picking at her cuticles and Angelina was flipping a knife between her fingers. Oliver was watching the man, not about to make a decision. This was Marcus' today._

_It would've hurt, deep down, in a part of Marcus that was still human and scared, if he saw the agony he would cause if he didn't protect families at least, if not soldiers._

_"I will grant your wish." He rumbled, aiming for a bored tone. "Brave of you, foolish mundane, to beg so much of a god. I admire that. Fare well, soldier. I'll see you in the battle."_

_He whisked himself back to Olympus before the general could respond, and missed the look of deep admiration in Oliver's eyes._

"Do you see it, now?" Luna said gently, as the image fell to shimmering pieces. 

"I-I don't see anything." Marcus cursed the stutter. "If you'll excuse me, I-er- have to speak to... Adrian. Yes! Adrian. Pleasant talk, Lovegood. See you at dinner."

And Luna watched with her thoughtful eyes as the boy rushed off, hands clenched and face vermillion. 

* * *

Marcus couldn't keep his encounter with Luna out of his head. The images, her convincing speech, it had addled Marcus to bits. 

And now he was throwing knives at a tree and unsuccessfully pretending it was Loony fucking Lovegood, who had to be  _so_ smart and he  _had_ to wander into Lover's Lane. If Marcus had just slept in and avoided trying to go for a run none of this would've ever happened.

"What'd the tree ever do to you?" Adrian said when he found Marcus pulling out one of 6 knives embedded into the birch trunk. 

"The  _tree-"_ Marcus snarled, as he ripped a dagger out, "-represents something that's annoying me to  _bits_ and I would rather be Lucius Malfoy rotting away in Blaise's personal torture chambers then be me right now."

"Lover's spat?" Pucey had commented lightly. "Let me guess- someone figured out your fat crush on Wood."

Marcus' livid face was all the answer Adrian needed.

"You stupid nerdy knowledge gods." Marcus snarked, his throat closing up slightly. "Think you fucking know everything."

"Pretty close." The younger god responded. "I don't get why you just  _won't tell him._ It's been centuries, Marcus, and you haven't really been happy for a long time."

Marcus flung a knife at the tree, and missed. His eyes had blurred.

Marcus had been happy once, in his mortal life. Before he was killed at 18 in his first year in the war. He had been 17 and in love. They had been so happy, stealing kisses in between lessons and swimming in the lake and lying intertwined under the sun. Marcus would've given him the stars. 

But he had been betrothed, and rather then fight for Marcus, he chose family duty. Marcus had been in his 14th year as a god when he watched the man die underneath him.

Marcus hadn't loved anyone since then until Oliver. 

The pain had eased away, but Marcus was still  _scared._

"Shut it Pucey." He sniped, but the effect was taken away by the misery in his voice."

"Marcus, I care. Fear isn't a good look for any god." Adrian murmured, and left Marcus to his own devices. 

Which meant absolutely  _slaughtering_ the tree in front of him.

* * *

 

"Fuck's sake, Luna," Ginny said. "They  _still_ haven't gotten it yet?"

It was another lovely day in Olympus and Ginny had her head in her lover's lap. They both looked on to see Marcus and Oliver walk by each other, exchanging jibes and shoulder bumps. They looked back at each other at different times.

"I tried." She sighed, twirling Ginny's beautiful red hair in her fingers. "He's adamant in keeping it to himself."

Ginny snorted. "Oliver  _has_ to be less obvious if he's trying to keep it secret. He's checking out Marcus' arse like it's a tall glass of water in a desert."

Luna giggled at Ginny's crudeness.

"They'll be together soon, I vow it." She said softly, watching Marcus walk off. "They just don't see what we all see. Even Pansy came to me wondering if she could just feed them aphrodisiacs."

"That sounds like a good idea."

"They'd never speak to each other again if they slept together without reason." She reasoned. Ginny sighed exasperatedly.

"I'm feeling impatient." The redhead mumbled back. "They're just so  _in love._ It's wasting an oppurtunity." 

Luna pressed a soft kiss to Ginny's head. 

"Soon, my love. They'll realise it soon."

* * *

 

That night at dinner, Marcus could  _feel_ sets of eyes on him. His neck prickled. He'd caught Pansy's eye a couple of times, only to see her engage conversation with Warrington. 

"So!" Ginny announced loudly. "Me and Luna will have been together for 3,000 years today!"

Cheers were heard across the dinner hall, and Ginny held her glass of nectar (or was it wine?) in a toast.

"To my beautiful goddess, I love you. I will love you till the ends of time." She grinned. Luna blushed a pale pink and Marcus felt the need to gag. 

They all raised their glass in cheers. 

"Speaking of love!" 

_Oh, fuck._

Adrian Pucey had meant to say that to only Marcus, but totally not on purposely said it loud enough for everyone to hear. It might've done with the fact Adrian had  _yelled it across the fucking table._

"How are you doing, Marcus?"

Fuck, fuck fuck. Marcus could feel eyes on him. 

"I hear what it's like being a husband." He answered boredly, but his heart was panicking. He saw Oliver watching in the corner of his eye. "It's not pleasant."

The straight coupled husbands (and some gay ones) chuckled good-naturedly at that.

"Really? I know there are some very eligible suitors you could try." Adrian continued, completely aware of the scene he was making. 

"Is that so?"

Wrong move. Adrian's eye glittered evilly. He held up an apple, inspecting it as if it was Marcus.

"Well yes. I know you have a specific type."

Marcus could feel himself short circuiting. Adrian was playing a dangerous game if what Marcus thought he was doing was true.

"Brown eyes? Brown hair. Athletic. Oblivious. A little moronic. Goes by-"

Marcus threw his knife at the apple Adrian held. It stuck into the wall behind him, juice dribbling down the wall.

Everyone gasped in shock, eyes wide and fearful,  _except for Adrian._ All the little shit did was grin smarmily.

"Enough." Marcus scowled at everyone, and stalked off. 

He had made his way to the courtyard before he realised that someone was following him. Probably Adrian,  _fuck,_ he was going to murder him.

"You're fucking dead, Adrian!" Marcus snapped, still walking, the footsteps behind him struggling to keep up. "He was sitting right there! I don't want him to know yet, I can't deal with the rej-" He spun around to see someone that was quite obviously  _not_ Adrian.

"Uh." Was all Oliver Wood had to eloquently say. In the dim starlight, Marcus could see him flush. "Sorry. Not Adrian."

Marcus cursed his bad luck, and would've cursed the gods above if he wasn't the gods above. "Come here to mock me Wood?" He snapped. 

He shook his head. "No! No, I didn't. I just wanted, I mean, I.... actually don't know what I'm doing out here." 

Marcus threw his hands up in the air, getting angrier by the second. "This is great. My day has been absolutely  _fucking_ amazing. I get cornered by Loony and lectured at, Adrian embarrasses me in front of the entire court of Olympians, and now the bloke I love has come out to pity me."

Oliver's eyes widened and Marcus clapped a hand over his mouth. Now he's really done it, gone and fucked up  _royally._ He hoped Blaise would let him live in the Underworld.

" _Shit."_ Marcus whispered. "I didn't mean it! Fuck, I didn't-" He turned away and was about to run like the  _coward_ he was until a warm hand grabbed his arm.

"Wait!" Oliver hissed. "Wait a fucking moment, Marcus Flint." 

Marcus squeezed his eyes shut, bracing himself for imminent rejection, and would spend the rest of his life miserable and pining until he was to rot away. 

"I hope you did mean it, really, because I've kinda been in love with you for  _ages._ " 

His eyes flew open and his heart pumped rapidly as he saw Oliver Wood in front of him, his face red but his eyes hopeful. His freckles smattered his nose and Marcus desperately wanted to count them infinitely like he used to try with the stars. 

So Marcus did the only thing his stupid, irrational brain would let him and he pressed his mouth to Oliver's.

He tasted like blood and war and apples and something  _warm_ that Marcus  _needed_ to know what it was so when they broke apart, he inhaled sharply and went in for more.

It went by too quickly, and when they broke apart for the second time, Oliver looked so  _beautiful_ grinning at Marcus like that, and nobody would doubt that he was a celestial being and belonged in the clouds.

Marcus would thank Adrian in a century, he thought, as they entwined their hands. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> come chat with me on tumblr @oliivverwood :)


End file.
